Wolf Den Drabbles
by Pendergreen
Summary: A series of drabble about the Saito/Fujita household... mostly about the parents.
1. She Must be Like a B

The wolf of Mibu… Captain of the third squad of the Shinsengumi… the ever fearless Hajime Saito waited with baited breath for the reaction of the volatile creature before him. He tensed as she shifted to face him.

A dark brow quirked and he stilled.

"They said I'm what?" came the question in a velvety growl a hint of malice lurking behind the humored tone.

Saito repeated himself grumbling.

A pale hand flashed to nadeshiko lips to stifle the breathy laugh. Smokey eyes glistened with mirth.

For a moment she stayed silent, giving him to time to light a cigarette, and slowly inhale the acrid smoke.

Finally when her sniggering had subsided she grinned wolfishly "soo…," she drawled cheekily standing up, and gathering up his empty bowl "Your friends think you're insufferable, too."

He grunted, as she stalked off to the kitchen "Some Buddha indeed."


	2. She Must be like nevermind

Tokio sniggered to herself, as she scrubbed the noodle bowl clean.  
'heh heh. So I'm a like a Buddha putting up with my Hajime? Good thing someone recognizes my goddess like qualities.'  
She grinned wide 'I'll have to tell Teruhime about this.'  
She set down the bowl, and looked out the window to watch Eiji practice his kenjutsu in the yard, Tsutomu standing off to the side swinging a stick mimicking his new big brother.  
The sun poured in from the open window warming her. She let her mind wander to the last time she and Teruhime had been able to meet face to face… Why she was still engaged to Hajime.

Tokio giggled as Teruhime stared openly in shock.  
"You?" the former princess gasped "Engaged?"  
Tokio nodded smiling brightly "Yes, indeed I am, milady. Your own Brother saw to it."  
"Tadatoshi never spoke a word of it to me," The Aizu beauty pouted "How dare he sponsor a marriage for my precious Tokio-chan, and not consult me."  
Tokio sighed pouring her former mistress some more tea "Really Teru.."  
"And who is this 'Goro Fujita'? A Meiji cop!" The lady bit down on her bright red lip in frustration "My Tokio-chan, a true Aizu born woman… a Joshitai no less… married to some crooked Meiji dog!?"  
Tokio cried out "Teruhime!"  
The slightly older woman's large brown eyes widened in surprise "My, Tokio, what on earth… you don't want to marry this scoundrel… do you?"  
Tokio blushed slightly, but she managed a cocky grin.  
"You… What could possibly posses you to?"  
Tokio shrugged "He's handsome, clever, serious, has no inclination to become a politician, all that on top of being Hajime Saito."  
Teruhime dropped her cup "You're joking…"  
Tokio's grin became wolfish  
"I thought he was…"  
"Divorced"  
"Good heavens! Why would the Wolf of Mibu working for the Meiji government?"  
Tokio shrugged "Aku Soku Zan."  
Teruhime regained her composure "And he is alright with it?"  
Tokio nodded "He seems to like me."  
Teruhime muttered quietly "Goodness the man must be like the Buddha…"  
Tokio looked up confused "Come again?"  
The former Aizu princess blanched "Oh nothing, Tokio-chan, I was just… never mind."

Tokio's eyes widened "She thinks I'm insufferable!" she shouted.  
"Indeed you are, wife." The haughty voice of her husband reached her ears, as he walked in to the kitchen lighting another cigarette.  
"Hmph" she pouted pursing her lips.  
He wrapped an arm around her waist pulling her into his steel like frame "I suppose that we're insufferable together, dear wife."  
She snorted "Remind me why I put up with you, again."  
Hajime quickly glanced out the window to check on the location of the children, and then smirked, a feral gleam taking over his narrow amber eyes. "very well, Tokio, the bedroom is this way." He nudged her forward towards the open shoji doors.  
Tokio's eyes widened before filling with mischief. "Oh yes. That's why." She dropped her voice "lead the way, Officer."


	3. While the Wolf was Away

Most women would tremble, cry, or something like that as they watched their husband walk away from them towards a bloodbath. And yet as Hajime Saito stalked out of sight down the road to face Shisio Makoto neither his wife nor his children seemed more than a little bit dismayed. When Hajime's silhouette vanished into the dusk Tokio whirled around her powder blue komon's sleeves billowed slightly. "Alright you two off to bed." She clapped, closing her eyes and mimicking her husband's policeman's manner.  
Eiji got up, and stretched before taking Tsutomu's little hand "C'mon Tsu-kun you heard your mother."  
The small boy nodded grasping at the bigger boy's tanned hands, and allowing himself to be pulled up and led off to their bedroom, mumbling a quiet question about where his father would get Soba without his mother to make it for him.  
Tokio smiled softly. Eiji had been living with them for just over a week now, and already she felt like he had always been there. Tsutomu had taken to the older boy immediately, and was already calling out to him, as "big Brother".  
When the boy was ready she would have Hajime ask him if he would allow them to adopt him officially.  
She glanced over at the wall, and smiled grimly "eh he'll be back, and he'll probably drag in loads of mud, and blood for me to clean up." She wandered over the wall, and placed her hand on the cool panel. "Hopefully things will quiet down a bit after this. Tsutomu misses him terribly when he's gone, and Eiji needs him right now. Goodness knows I could use him around more often." She went on aloud; as she slid open the large secret compartment. She reached in and withdrew her old Naginata. She wandered back to the window leaving the compartment wide open, and began to sharpen the blade. "Perhaps… you could swing it so he has reason to stick around just a little bit longer next time?" she glanced up.  
Softly she sighed, and leaned back opting to sleep out by the door, armed, just in case. Before she drifted off she cast one last look to the open wall at the crimson flag her husband had served under.


	4. Tokugawa era girltalk

For every cushion in the sitting room there was a lady. From every lady poured giggles and gossip… All, Teruhime noticed, but her dear Tokio. Her maid, friend, and protector sat off in the corner looking thoughtful.  
Odd… was all the princess could think about it…. Very odd.  
It was for sure that Tokio didn't quite fit in with the other women from court.  
Each of the ladies were perfect beauties, pale unmarked skin, red lips, sleek dark hair that unbound would drag on the floor, and rich colorful kimono made of the finest silk available to their station. Like pretty dolls.  
Tokio was an all together different breed. Pretty enough in her own right, sun kissed skin untouched by makeup, chestnut hair chopped roughly to her shoulders, and a simple kimono probably cheaper than it looked. Joshitai through and through Tokio looked like a wolf in a litter of kittens.  
Yet her commitment to the protection of Aizu wasn't unappreciated by the other ladies, even those without the temperament to pick up one of Tokio's favored Naginata, could see the value of her striking down a man with the heavy bladed pole… especially with those despicable rebels running around. At least, the princess corrected in her head, so the ladies would say in her presence so as not to displease her by speaking ill of her closest companion.  
And despite her strangeness she was very normal. Yes she was mercurial, naggy, and intimidating, but she was also sociable, good natured, clever, and just like the rest she was quite the gossip.  
So it was very strange indeed for Tokio to sit off to the side on an occasion with such cause for gossip.  
The officers of the Shingengumi were in Aizu. There was so much to talk about. The other ladies all gushed about how handsome Captain Todo, and Captain Okita were. How amiable Commander Kondo was, and how fun the second and tenth unit captains Nagakura, and Harada were. Of course how very imposing and sexy Vice commander Hijikata was… None of them were certain whether this would insult the man or please him if he heard it.  
And yet none of this gossip drew Tokio any closer to the she stayed rooted by the window glancing out, perhaps at the sky. No of course Tokio wouldn't be cloud watching. Meditation, and relaxing activities weren't Tokio's cup of tea…. Neither was tea for that matter not unless there was lemon in the mix. Working, training, moving, accomplishing, and investigating were what the restless woman did.  
Now it was Teruhime's turn to investigate. She stood up, which drew the ladies attention. The noise dimmed. In tiny steps… she noted she had failed at being Tokio already, Tokio did not take tiny steps… Teruhime slipped over to her friend leaned over, and cooed coyly "What are you looking out at, Tokio-chan?"  
The other ladies giggled as Tokio startled, and gasped.  
Tokio reddened as Teruhime glanced out the window and smirked "could it be, Tokio, that you were ogling the Shinsengumi men down there?"  
The ladies laughed out loud, as Teruhime made her way back to the center of the group, and beckoned the little she wolf to join them. "Tell us Tokio, which one do you fancy?"  
Tokio obediently sat next to her mistress, but she didn't spill the beans.  
The ladies quickly supplied the easiest guess "Todo? It must be him he's so devastating."  
Tokio made a gagging sound in the back of the throat.  
Teruhime translated "too pretty."  
They tried again "Okita?"  
Tokio snorted  
Teruhime ventured a "too young."  
The youngest girl took a stab at it "Harada?"  
Tokio sniffed.  
"A 'moron'." Teruhime sighed  
They tried once more "Hijikata?"  
Teruhime thought about it, and it didn't not make sense. Yet the look on Tokio's face showed frustration rather than relief or bashfulness.  
Tokio growled low, and bit out an answer no one had been expecting "Saito, okay?"  
For a few moments the girls were stunned, and then they crinkled their pretty powdered noses. One girl even ventured an "icky".  
Tokio looked stunned for a swift second, and demanded to know what was the matter with them. "He's really... wow."  
"Wow in a beat up, starved, mangy, cranky, old wolf kind of way?" inquired a brave lady.  
Teruhime decided not to translate for the ladies, but she knew what her friend's unspoken retort was.  
'Wow in a tried and tested, hungry, manly, intense, mature, wolfish kind of way' So very Tokio. The man was still looked to her like a beat up, starved, mangy, cranky, old wolf, but she wasn't a wolf, best leave it to wolves to judge wolves.  
The ladies went back to their gossip.  
Teruhime looked at Tokio, and Tokio looked back. They nodded at each other, and before they rejoined the conversation Tokio whispered one last thing "I'm going to marry that man someday."


End file.
